BKU burns effigy of Panchayat Minister for terming farmers ‘idler’

Sangrur – Led by state president of BKU (Ugrahan) Joginder Singh Ugrahan, a large number of farmers and women burnt an effigy of Punjab Panchayat Minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa outside District Administrative Complex (DC office) here on Thursday. They burnt the effigy as the minister had allegedly termed the farmers, staging protest against non-waiving off entire debt of the farmers, as “idler”. They also raised slogans against the minister. On the occasion, Joginder Singh Ugrahan said, the minister had hurt the sentiments of the farmers by terming them “idler’. He said farmers were suffering in a big way nowadays due to which many of debt-ridden farmers had already committed suicides. The farmers were not fond of dharnas and protests but they had been staging protests and dharnas since January 22 as Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had backtracked from the promise, made with farmers to waive off their entire debt during previous assembly elections, he added. Ugrahan also said that the ministers, like Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa, had been misguiding the common masses y terming the farmers idler. He also warned the minister not to issue such statements otherwise farmers would be compelled to intensify their agitation against him. Meanwhile, the five-day dharna by BKU (Ugrahan), in which hundreds of men and women have been taking part against non-waiving of entire debt of the farmers, on Thursday entered its fourth day outside district administrative complex (DC office) here. In the dharna, hundreds of farmers and women from various villages have been taking part.